as in preparatory
coming before the main part or item usually to introduce or prepare for what follows
we need to do some preliminary research in order to properly focus the experiment
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in prelude
a performance, activity, or event that precedes and sets the stage for the main event
a meeting to discuss seating arrangements that was merely a preliminary to the formal negotiating sessions
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Recent Examples of preliminary
Quinta Jurecic, The Atlantic, 5 Mar. 2026
The board would then have 90 days after the end of a major weather disaster to produce a preliminary report, followed by a more comprehensive final report within 20 months.
—Evan Bush, NBC news, 5 Mar. 2026
Los Angeles Times, 2 Jan. 2026
The contestant from Jamaica, Gabrielle Henry, took a scary tumble during the evening gown round at Wednesday’s preliminaries and was carried away in a stretcher, according to social media videos which circulated of her fall.
—Lex Harvey, CNN Money, 21 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for preliminary
Adjective
Yesterday, Republican senators voted down a measure that would have represented a preliminary step under the War Powers Resolution toward limiting the president’s ability to use force in Iran.
—Quinta Jurecic, The Atlantic, 5 Mar. 2026
The board would then have 90 days after the end of a major weather disaster to produce a preliminary report, followed by a more comprehensive final report within 20 months.
—Evan Bush, NBC news, 5 Mar. 2026
Noun
Is it reduced to yet another fill-in-the-blank preliminary to a national title game in some super-duper-they-look-alike stadium?
—Los Angeles Times, 2 Jan. 2026
The contestant from Jamaica, Gabrielle Henry, took a scary tumble during the evening gown round at Wednesday’s preliminaries and was carried away in a stretcher, according to social media videos which circulated of her fall.
—Lex Harvey, CNN Money, 21 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for preliminary
Recent Examples of Synonyms for preliminary
Adjective
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The push for college-for-all that gained momentum through the 1990s and 2000s reframed high school as a four-year college preparatory exercise.—
Gerald Bradshaw,
Chicago Tribune,
25 Feb. 2026
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After studying his own practice, Licklider determined that as much as 85% of his intellectual work — such as searching for data, running calculations, testing conclusions, and synthesizing information — was fundamentally preparatory for deeper, more creative efforts.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
9 Feb. 2026
Noun
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As Bill Callahan celebrates the release of new album My Days of 58, the stalwart singer-songwriter has unveiled a prelude to his May tour of North America.—
Jazz Monroe,
Pitchfork,
5 Mar. 2026
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That was just a prelude of an incredible ending in which the Red Devils won the final four events of the meet, breaking state records in three of them.—
Matt Le Cren,
Chicago Tribune,
3 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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This card offers one of the longest introductory APR periods for purchases and qualifying balance transfers.—
Jason Stauffer,
CNBC,
10 Mar. 2026
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Visits that require a provider cost $29 each for patients who are not One Medical members or not using an introductory offer through Prime.—
Amina Niasse,
USA Today,
10 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Preliminary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/preliminary. Accessed 13 Mar. 2026.
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